The beauty, peace and tranquillity of the Sikhs holiest shrine the Golden temple is in sharp contrast to the public area that spills out in front of the entrance to the complex.

The disorganised, dust bowl that forms the current entrance plaza has long been recognised as a huge wasted space Ascetically unattractive, it is a dusty cross road for people, VIPs cars and scruffy vendors and this is not lost on the civic authorities who have now turned their attention on this last undeveloped part of the outer environment of the Harimandir Complex.

Now, this final area – over 9400 sqm is size is to be redeveloped to provide a plaza that will complement the civic grandeur of Golden Temple and provide a lively venue for formal and informal events and congregation. Between 100 – 400,000 pilgrims visit the Harimandir each day, over 16m Sikhs around the world consider the location the most sacred of Sikh places and as such the plan to develop an entrance plaza will be of great interest to many people. In an attempt to democratize the process and select the best of the design and architectural talent around the world the Punjab Heritage and Tourism Promotion Board have chosen to launch an international architectural design competition to redesign the Golden Temple Entrance Plaza.

Launched this week, the competition calls on experienced architects around the world to create a fore court or plaza in front of imposing main entrance portal to the complex. As it is surrounded by the diverse environment in the historic core of walled city of Amritsar, the competition site calls for the provisions of community sensitive approach and a design the complements the medieval architecture of the existing buildings.

The competition calls for a design that will attract national and international visitors but will also preserve the essence of the space out side of any gurdwara; namely a Jauda Ghar (Place for removing shoes before entering). An ambitious 500sqm semi basement is envisaged that will include a hall for 400 people, an information desk, a V.I.P. Lounge and a Press Gallery

Launching the initiative, Simran Sekhon from the Punjab Heritage and Tourist Promotion Board, commented on the importance of the site for state tourism “The Golden Temple is extremely important to us as we as a state are identified with the Golden Temple. Spiritually it is important not only to the Sikh community but people from all walks of life. Our objective of conducting this competition is to beautify the entrance to this holy site” A further planned innovation is the addition of an interpretation centre to act as an educational resource fro visitors from around the world, continued Sekhon “an interpretation centre right at the entrance will enable people to understand what they will witness once they enter the premises of the Golden Temple. It will show case to the visitors the history of the temple along with the spiritual importance this holy place holds in the hearts of the people.

From the iconic Sydney Opera House to London’s ultra Modern Millennium bridge, architectural design competitions have delivered edgy and innovative design ideas that civic bodies are otherwise unlikely to conceive. As such this competition could prove to completely revolutionize the way that millions of pilgrims and visitors alike experience the Sikhs most sacred religious site.

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